Six years later, Fuentes' recovery continues

While Julio Fuentes' recovery
still continues, his younger brother, Maleke, has followed his
footsteps as a football player at Alfred.Alfred athletics photo

The scouting report was clear and Julio Fuentes knew exactly
where to be. But if you ask him about the play, he’ll still
tell you it never felt right to him.

Sept. 9, 2006: Fuentes’ Alfred Saxons were hosting the
Thiel Tomcats in the season opener. Fuentes lined up for the second
half kickoff in the middle of the field, ready for Thiel’s
trademark “skyball” kickoff. Fuentes, a diverse
sophomore running back, was out there for any number of scenarios
-- to field a short kickoff, to fair catch a particularly high
kickoff, or block in the event a teammate tried a return.

Thiel kicker Sammy Koyl didn’t pop the kick high and
short. He kicked it long and, inadvertently, set in motion the play
that would change Fuentes’ life forever.

Fuentes retreated on the field to get into position in the
blocking wedge. Fuentes found himself in the middle of the wedge,
bearing down on the incoming Thiel players. Those few seconds to
retreat cost the undersized Fuentes (5-foot-2, 145 pounds) precious
time to get in proper position. He prepared for contact anyway.

“The last three feet before I actually hit the guy, it
felt like it was in slow motion. It really did,” Fuentes
said. “... When I hit him, I think I might have blacked out,
but I’m not too sure.”

Fuentes said he heard an “accordion sound” and felt
his “whole body shutting down.” He had no way of
knowing at the time, but the hit had severely damaged the C-4 and
C-5 vertebrae of his spinal column.

“I knew when [paramedics] came out that I was
paralyzed,” Fuentes said. “It was definitely a
different feeling.”

Fuentes was taken by ambulance to nearby St. James Hospital in
Hornell, N.Y., but was later moved to Strong Memorial Hospital in
Rochester, N.Y., where he would spend the next month or so.

Forget a promising football career -- Fuentes was now facing a
battle for his life. Fuentes was placed in an induced coma and kept
alive by a ventilator. He knew people were visiting him, but he
couldn’t distinguish faces. His mother Ella, younger
brother Maleke -- now a standout freshman on Alfred’s
football team, but then just a worried 12-year-old -- and two
younger sisters, as well as coach Dave Murray, the Alfred staff and
players were all there for him.

Fuentes’ initial diagnosis wasn’t promising. If he
did regain movement in both arms, doctors said, that would probably
be it. Fuentes was unlikely to move his legs again, and would
almost certainly never walk.

During Fuentes’ time in Rochester, his mother learned
about the Shepherd Center, a catastrophic care hospital for
traumatic brain and spinal injuries in Atlanta. That’s where
Fuentes ending up spending the next six months, re-learning how to
eat, speak and breathe on his own without the aid of a tracheal
tube.

“If I didn’t go there, I don’t think I’d
be where I am right now,” Fuentes said.

Fuentes’ spinal injury was eventually determined to be
“incomplete,” meaning it is possible for him to regain
full function. This is an ongoing and difficult process, though he
has movement in his arms and legs. A typical day for Fuentes, now
back with his family in Olean, N.Y., starts with leg and upper body
stretches with the help of an aid.

After that, he’ll head to therapy to work on any number of
strength exercises, most of which focus on the upper body. Fuentes
is working on standing alone by myself, taking steps with a walker
and, with the help of a body harness, move his legs.

“I went from curling 50, 60, 70 pounds with a dumbbell to
not even being able to curl a two-pounder,” Fuentes said.
“It was really disheartening. ... As far as recovery,
nobody knows how far I can get back. But I’m working to get
back.”

Fuentes, who grew up playing baseball and didn’t pick up
football until his family moved to Olean when he was eight years
old, has never seen video of the play. Fuentes readily admits he
was overcome with a strange feeling just seconds before that
kickoff. But even now, after six years of grueling rehabilitation,
Fuentes said he wouldn’t change a thing.

“I honestly don’t [have any regrets],” Fuentes
said. “If I was 100 percent tomorrow, I might try out for the
team again. I love the game. ... I’ve taken that hit
thousands of times. Since I was eight years old I’ve been
hitting bigger people and doing a pretty good job at it. It’s
just something that happened.”

The game of football has been good to the Fuentes family. Julio
won his fair share of awards as a standout two-way player at Olean
High School and, he’s proud to say, he’s never been on
a team that’s had a losing season. His younger brother,
Maleke, has been a revelation for the Saxons this season, leading
the team in receptions (30) and receiving yards (391) as a true
freshman. Maleke also has 236 yards and three TDs on the ground and
is the team’s top kick and punt returner.

Julio remembers high-fiving Maleke, who could not be reached for
this story, as he came out of the tunnel at Merrill Field for the
second half of the Thiel game. The two remain close -- Julio goes
to every Alfred home game and most road games within reasonable
travel distance, and Maleke will call every other day to talk about
life and football. Julio also worked closely with Maleke in
football workouts, helping to mold 5-6, 160-pound Maleke into the
dynamic playmaker he is now.

Julio has just recently started taking online classes with an
eye toward a future in sports psychology, a field that will allow
him to help athletes facing similar crossroads. Like his
family has helped him through his recovery, Julio hopes he can be a
similar inspiration to others.

“The best thing we can do when things like that happen is
get people better help afterwards,” Julio said. “Like
get the families prepared for stuff like this, because I think that
was the most difficult transition.”

Painting the playoff picture

Empire 8

Automatic bid: Salisbury. The Sea Gulls
clinched their second straight Empire 8 title and playoff bid with
their 63-23 win against Utica on Saturday. Dan Griffin rushed for
142 yards and five touchdowns as Salisbury piled up 564 yards on
the ground. When the Sea Gulls have the triple-option attack
working to perfection, they are tough to beat. This team again
appears poised for a deep playoff run.

Potential Pool C bid(s): None likely. Utica,
St. John Fisher, Alfred and Ithaca all enter the final week of the
regular season with three losses. This puts them behind teams like
Rowan, Lycoming, Bridgewater State and Delaware Valley in
contention for a Pool C bid. Don’t expect the Empire 8 to get
two teams into the playoff field this season.

NJAC

Automatic bid: Cortland State. The Red Dragons
have had the NJAC wrapped up for two weeks now. Their game against
William Paterson, originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon, was
understandably canceled in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. Cortland
finishes the regular season with its annual Cortaca Jug battle
against Ithaca.

Potential Pool C bid(s): Rowan. The Profs have
two losses, but only one against a Division III team (Cortland
State). As it stands, Rowan sits atop the Pool C bid contenders in
the East. A win against TCNJ in the regular-season finale virtually
assures the Profs of a Pool C bid. A loss would complicate
things.

Liberty League

Automatic bid: Hobart. The Statesmen took care
of business Saturday with a 34-14 win against winless St. Lawrence,
clinching the Liberty League’s title and automatic playoff
bid. Quarterback Nick Strang accounted for four total TDs and Tyre
Coleman and Devin Worthington each tallied two sacks as the
Statesmen cruised. Hobart closes the regular season with a
home game against Rochester. There’s little reason to think
Hobart won’t finish 10-0 and enter the playoffs as one of the
top contenders.

Potential Pool C bid(s): None. This
wasn’t a particularly strong year for the Liberty League.
Union is 5-1 in the conference, and both Springfield and RPI have
three losses each. But another true playoff contender never emerged
this season.

MAC

Automatic bid: Widener or Delaware Valley.
While the other three conferences are, for the most part, set, the
MAC is still up in the air. Widener hosts Delaware Valley in the
regular-season finale. Widener clinches the automatic bid if it
wins. The rest of the breakdown was covered in last week's
column.

Potential Pool C bid(s): Widener, Delaware
Valley, Lycoming. Here’s where it gets tricky. If Widener
loses, it will still get a Pool C bid. Delaware Valley likely
won’t be as lucky. The Aggies still rank behind teams like
Rowan, Lycoming and Bridgewater State in Pool C criteria. However,
Delaware Valley could win by 14, not get the automatic bid and
improve its Pool C chances. Lycoming would need a win in its own
game, a Widener win and a Rowan loss to best improve its chances.
That’s not out of the question, but it’s not ideal
either.

Top 25: Widener cracks the top 10

Widener moved into the top 10 in this week’s D3football.com Top 25 poll. The Pride climbed from No.
11 to No. 9, joining Hobart (No. 8) as East teams in the top
10.

Salisbury jumped from No. 16 to No. 11 following its Empire 8
title-clinching rout of Utica. NJAC champion Cortland State rose
one spot to No. 19 this week.

Rowan, Delaware Valley and Lycoming each received votes this
week.

Quick hits

Aaron Wilmer rushed for two touchdowns and Delaware
Valley’s defense forced five sacks and three interceptions in
a 23-7 win against Wilkes. ... Casey Kacz tossed two touchdowns,
Rich Pete rushed for 170 yards and Buffalo State’s defense
forced four turnovers in a season-ending 17-9 win vs. St. John
Fisher. Buffalo State finished its first season in the Empire 8
with a 6-4 record, including wins against Cortland State,
UW-Whitewater and St. John Fisher. ... Craig Needhammer rushed for
127 yards and a score and Parker Showers added 78 yards and two TDs
as Lycoming kept its playoff hopes alive with a 32-7 victory
against Stevenson. ... William Merz’s 100-yard interception
return for a touchdown in the second overtime clinched Montclair
State’s wild, come-from-behind 55-49 win against Brockport
State. Merz’s return set a school record and tied the NCAA
mark. ... Connor Eck passed for 265 yards and three TDs and rushed
for another score as Union scored 51 unanswered points to rout
Merchant Marine 51-7. ... Joe Enslin threw for 303 yards and three
scores and Maleke Fuentes added 182 total yards and two touchdowns
in Alfred’s 40-14 rout of Frostburg State. ... Joel Altavesta
rushed for 170 yards and one touchdown as Springfield knocked off
RPI 42-21. ... Ithaca beat Hartwick 28-7 and, in the process, tied
a school record with six interceptions. Brian Garvey tied an Ithaca
record with three interceptions, including a fourth-quarter pick he
returned four yards for a touchdown. ... Drew Peterson returned a
third-quarter punt 47 yards for a touchdown and Ty Hughes rushed
for 127 yards and a TD in Albright’s 48-0 win vs.
Misericordia. ... Leo Kyte passed for 206 yards and a pair of
scores as Lebanon Valley rallied to a 34-19 win over King’s.
... Sean Clark intercepted a pair of passes and helped TCNJ secure
a 14-0 win over Morrisville State. ... Dean Kennedy tossed three
touchdowns to Ken Apostolakos and the Rochester defense forced
seven turnovers in a 42-15 rout of WPI.

Nothing is on the line as far as playoff bids are concerned, but
when Cortland (7-1, 7-0) hosts Ithaca (6-3, 4-3) at noon Saturday,
good football will be played. The annual Cortaca Jug matchup is
among the best in Division III football.

The MAC champion (and its accompanying automatic playoff bid)
will be on the line when Widener (8-0, 7-0) hosts Delaware Valley
(7-2, 7-1) at 1 p.m. Saturday. Widener would nab a Pool C bid if
Delaware Valley wins. But the Aggies likely need to win this game
to get into the playoff field.

Contact me

I’m always happy to hear from you, whether its questions,
feedback or story ideas. Please reach out to me at andrew.lovell@d3sports.com.
You can also follow me on Twitter (@andrew_lovell), and be sure to get
involved in the discussions on the Around the East thread on the
message board.

Andrew Lovell is an associate news editor for ESPN.com and a former sports staff writer/editor for the New Britain Herald (Conn.). He has contributed freelance work to ESPN Rise and has been a regular contributor to D3football.com since 2007. Andrew has also written for a number of daily newspapers in New York, including the Poughkeepsie Journal, Ithaca Journal and Auburn Citizen. He graduated from Ithaca College in 2008 with B.A. in Sport Media and a minor in writing. A native of Hyde Park, N.Y., Andrew currently resides in New Britain.